Lawmakers in Minnesota passed a bill on Tuesday that will change the state’s workers’ compensation requirements to make it easier for healthcare workers, first responders, and other essential workers to make claims if they contract COVID-19.
Workers’ compensation laws require employers—or rather, their insurance company—to cover any medical, rehabilitation, and wage loss costs that result from injuries or illnesses sustained at work.
A physician’s assistant at a Loxahatchee hospital has been arrested for allegedly stealing medical supplies.
Rhoderick Manhattan, 46, was charged with larceny of emergency equipment and grand theft of emergency medical equipment during a state of emergency. He was taken to Palm Beach County Jail on Friday and was later released on $15,000 bond. The press did not name an attorney for him.
U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez has announced the formation of the Middle District of Florida COVID-19 Fraud Task Force in response to the growing threat of fraud presented by the coronavirus pandemic.
The task force is made up of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. Its mission is to identify, investigate, and prosecute incidents of fraud related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the effort, the Justice Department and its various components will coordinate information and resources with law enforcement agencies throughout Florida.
The Michigan Attorney General’s Office announced charges last week against Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith and three other county officials accused of felony crimes that include misconduct in office, embezzlement, and misusing funds obtained through civil asset forfeiture.
Smith is charged with embezzlement by a public official, tampering with evidence in a civil proceeding, official misconduct in office, accessory after the fact to embezzlement by a public official, conspiracy to commit forgery, and conducting a criminal enterprise. Attorney information wasn’t available.
Detroit. New York. Fort Worth. Boston.
These are some of the largest police departments in the country, and all are suffering the effects of COVID-19. On a recent Friday, 10% of the New York police force, about 4,111 officers, called in sick as the virus began to move through the ranks. Over 500 personnel of the department have tested positive for the virus, including some top-ranking officials. Detroit’s PD has 20% of its officers under quarantine, while Boston’s former Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis expressed what many officers and citizens alike worry about.
Criminal Defense and Civil Forfeiture Blog